Hal Pollner
Reged: 08/30/05
Posts: 6213
Loc: Southern California Desert
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HEY ED, JOE, and PETER:
Pictured is an old surveyor's tripod that I bought from an antique store about 12 years ago, and have never used.
It must have carried a variety of loads, judging from the three mounting bolt patterns!
It's 53" high and has a 5" diameter cast aluminum mounting plate that is drilled and tapped for one 3/4" bolt in the center, surrounded by holes for three 3/8" bolts and four 1/4" bolts.
If a 3/8" bolt is required for the center, I could easily turn up a circular adapter plate on my lathe, with a 3/8 hole drilled and tapped in the center. It would be mounted to the tripod plate using 1/4" bolts.
I'm all for Joe's Helix Hercules Fork Mount! Being a retired engineer and metalworking hobbyist, I appreciate symmetrical, non-offset mounts which are balanced around the altitude axis by using the pivot points built into the sides of the Apogee's barrels.
If this old tripod could be used, then all I would have to buy would be the $300 Helix Hercules Fork Mount!
HAL
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Edited by Hal Pollner (05/02/07 03:39 PM)
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edwincjones
Post Laureate
Reged: 04/10/04
Posts: 4421
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beautiful, solid appearing tripod
hope that you can put it to good use
edj
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n w arkansas
Binocular, Solar, General Amateur Astronomy
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pcad
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/17/05
Posts: 1501
Loc: Connecticut
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Hal,
It sure looks like it would support it. After all, the RA88 is only 13.5 lbs, not 135 lbs.
Is there any way to alter the length of the legs? Without that, you'll have to find a way to deal with the changing height of the ep's. A stool perhaps? Not ideal.
I would recomend a tripod with a geared center column to address this issue. I have a standard Aluminum tripod with my Vixen fork mount and wish I had an adjustable center column. I sometimes have to readjust the leg lengths for objects at different elevations. Inconvienient, but not enough to make me spring for one of the big photo tripods yet.
In fact, there may be some Vixen fork mounts still on sale. I think the Helix mounts are better, but the Vixen mount is good too.
It would be nice to take advantage of the bosses on the sides for mounting the bino. I believe they are 3/16 coarse thread. Then you can then remove the center mounting pedestal and lighten the bino a little bit.
If you devise a good mounting scheme for the side bosses let me know, I may want to commission you to make one for me.
Peter
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Peter
Telescopes 25 - 318 mm
Binoculars 15 - 88 mm
Microscope 50x - 1000x
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Joe Ogiba
Post Laureate
Reged: 02/14/02
Posts: 3361
Loc: NJ USA
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Hal, it should work since I sometimes use my RA-88-SA's on a surveyor tripod with Unistar mount.
Joe
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Pentax PF-80ED
Meade 102ED APO
Orion EON 72
120ST
Apex 127
C6 XLT
CR150
C9.25
XT10
Zeiss 7x42 FL
Canon 10x42L IS WP
15x50 IS
12x36 IS II
Garrett Optical 28x110 HD-WP Signature Series
Oberwerk BT-80 45
Apogee RA-88-SA
Denk II Power x Switch binoviewer w/13mm Ethos, 20mm Pentax XW's, 20mm Widescan III's.
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pcad
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/17/05
Posts: 1501
Loc: Connecticut
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Joe,
Do you think that the non-adjustable leg height to be an issue with the tripod Hal is showing us? I think it would be an issue for me, but we're all different in our preferences.
Peter
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Peter
Telescopes 25 - 318 mm
Binoculars 15 - 88 mm
Microscope 50x - 1000x
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Hal Pollner
Reged: 08/30/05
Posts: 6213
Loc: Southern California Desert
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Gentlemen:
Here's my solution to the non-adjustable height of my surveyor's tripod:
This musician's chair has adjustable seat height, asjustable backrest height, and adjustable footrest height. It's made of durable steel and the seat and back are generously padded.
If necessary, I could shorten the tripod legs to put it in the range of my chair's adjustable seat height, thus tailoring the whole setup for this 70-year-old observer's optimal comfort!
HAL
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Edited by Hal Pollner (05/02/07 08:44 PM)
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Hal Pollner
Reged: 08/30/05
Posts: 6213
Loc: Southern California Desert
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Psst...Hey Joe...
No wonder New Jersey is called "The Garden State"...your back yard is gorgeous!
Hal
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Edited by Hal Pollner (05/02/07 08:50 PM)
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Les
professor emeritus
Reged: 04/22/06
Posts: 666
Loc: Maryland
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Hal, that's the ticket. All my tripods are adjustable but I never adjust them because it is just so much easier to use an adjustable chair of some kind. My Helix mount sits on an Oberwerks tripod that is adjusted for 47 inches in height.
Yours is a pretty tripod. Does it have a safety chain or spreader?
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Les
Canon 10x42L IS
Oberwerks BT80/45, Helix Hercules mount on Oberwerks Standard Tripod
Swift 8x44ED Ultralite
Questar 50th Anniversary Model, 501 head on Manfrotto 475 tripod
Stellarvue SV90T 90mm Fluorite refractor Bogen 3236/Televue Tele-Pod Head
Questar 7 Astro
Vixen GP-DX on Baader Surveyor Tripod
Edited by Les (05/02/07 08:56 PM)
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Hal Pollner
Reged: 08/30/05
Posts: 6213
Loc: Southern California Desert
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HEY LES:
Your comments are encouraging!
Yes, my old tripod has a safety chain to prevent leg collapse.
HAL
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Edited by Hal Pollner (05/02/07 09:52 PM)
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pcad
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/17/05
Posts: 1501
Loc: Connecticut
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Hal,
OK then, the chair works for me. Height issue solved. Do you have an ETA for the bino?
Peter
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Peter
Telescopes 25 - 318 mm
Binoculars 15 - 88 mm
Microscope 50x - 1000x
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Joe Ogiba
Post Laureate
Reged: 02/14/02
Posts: 3361
Loc: NJ USA
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Quote:
Psst...Hey Joe...
No wonder New Jersey is called "The Garden State"...your back yard is gorgeous!
Hal
But we don't have the dark skies like you have Hal.
Joe
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Pentax PF-80ED
Meade 102ED APO
Orion EON 72
120ST
Apex 127
C6 XLT
CR150
C9.25
XT10
Zeiss 7x42 FL
Canon 10x42L IS WP
15x50 IS
12x36 IS II
Garrett Optical 28x110 HD-WP Signature Series
Oberwerk BT-80 45
Apogee RA-88-SA
Denk II Power x Switch binoviewer w/13mm Ethos, 20mm Pentax XW's, 20mm Widescan III's.
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Hal Pollner
Reged: 08/30/05
Posts: 6213
Loc: Southern California Desert
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HEY PETER:
The 22-pound package was shipped today, with no ETA stated.
HAL
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Hal Pollner
Reged: 08/30/05
Posts: 6213
Loc: Southern California Desert
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HEY PETER:
A later check with UPS tracking showed my delivery date to be 5-8-07. (The 62nd anniversary of the Allied Victory in Europe, May 8 1945)
HAL
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pcad
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/17/05
Posts: 1501
Loc: Connecticut
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Howl,
Nothing like anticipation, is there? Good luck.
Peter
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Peter
Telescopes 25 - 318 mm
Binoculars 15 - 88 mm
Microscope 50x - 1000x
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